BENGALURU: A sudden surge of water due to the bursting of the Cauvery Stage V pipeline in Hegde Nagar has revealed a shocker.
The BWSSB, while probing the incident, discovered that an apartment complex had illegally connected the building’s sanitary line to the Cauvery Stage V pipeline, causing it to burst as gases had accumulated inside.
BWSSB Chairman Ram Prasat Manohar has now directed his officials to take tough action against the owner of Royal Bliss Apartment in Hegde Nagar, Thanisandra, who was responsible for the act that could have triggered a massive disease outbreak in the area.
“BWSSB will recover the damage caused to neighbouring properties and financial loss to the Water Board,” he said.
‘BWSSB will file civil suit to recoup loss’
The concerning issue came to light after complaints were raised by residents in the neighbourhood about severe damage to water pipelines in their properties, following a sudden surge from the connecting line in Hegde Nagar.
The burst due to pressure building up from accumulating sewage in the pipeline meant for drinking water, caused extensive property damage, besides waste of a large volume of clean drinking water, which had been transported from Torekadanahalli (TK Halli), 160 km away.
Upon detection of the problem, the affected pipeline has since been thoroughly cleaned, disinfected, and is now ready to be transferred to the management department to supply water to 110 villages.
“This incident underscores the significant labour and resources the BWSSB invests in providing clean water to the city’s residents. It is unacceptable for public resources to be compromised for individual gain. I have instructed the authorities to file a criminal case against the building owner. Additionally, BWSSB will file a civil suit to recover the financial loss incurred by BWSSB and the affected neighbouring properties,” Manohar said.
The incident has also led the Water Board chairman to direct engineers and officials to accelerate the process of detection of unauthorised sewage connections across Bengaluru. He has also warned of criminal charges against those resorting to such illegal connections that can threaten the health of a large number of people.